“I thought of happiness, how it is woven
Out of the silence in the empty house each day
And how it is not sudden and it is not given
But is creation itself like the growth of a tree.
No one has seen it happen, but inside the bark
Another circle is growing in the expanding ring.
No one has heard the root go deeper in the dark,
But the tree is lifted by this inward work
And its plumes shine, and its leaves are glittering.”
— May Sarton, Collected Poems:The Work of Happiness
The showy Texas wild “rock rose” in my yard symbolizes the resilience required for true happiness. The delicate petals don’t reveal their inner strength, but through the hottest and driest summer in recent memory, they wait and burst into an explosion of color when the rains come.
I grew up in Texas, so I am no stranger to the heat, but this is something altogether different. It tests your resolve and belief in the power of nature, and in a few days of soaking rain, your faith is restored.
The wild rose waits, conserves her energy to flourish when the conditions are right, and invites you to notice her expression to guide your own.
The key is to learn the language of nature and pay attention to its lessons.
Be well,
Kathy